Coral reefs are dying. Harboring some of the most diverse species of marine life, corals are ecologically important. Paul Sikkel, a marine ecologist from Arkansas State University, explains why many coral reefs are dying and how we can save them.
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http://www.nsf.gov/discoveries/disc_summ.jsp?cntn_id=129643
http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=124768
http://www.livescience.com/40687-gnathia-marleyi-controversy-nsf-ria.htm...

We often hear about insects and other animals passing on diseases to humans, so-called zoonotic diseases, such as rabies, cholera, West Nile virus, etc...Now, for the first time, researchers are examining a disease that humans are spreading to an animal, specifically Elkhorn coral off the Florida Keys. With support from the National Science Foundation, Rollins College biologist Kathryn Sutherland is tracing this emerging infectious disease phenomenon, known as "reverse zoonosis." Elkhorn...